Delhi court shields journalist Rajat Sharma's rights against deepfakes

Justice Jyoti Singh of the Delhi High Court passed the protective order on August 24, restraining multiple Facebook and YouTube accounts from infringing upon Sharma's personality and publicity rights. The judgment upheld the lawsuit filed by the veteran journalist and news broadcaster against certain social media accounts engaged in unauthorized use of his identity.

The court's directive mandates that social media platforms acknowledge removal requests within 24 hours and complete the takedown within 36 hours thereafter. Justice Singh's order specifically permits Sharma to approach Meta Platforms Inc., which operates Facebook, and Google LLC, the parent company of YouTube, against any content that directly or indirectly misuses, misappropriates or exploits his name, likeness, image, voice, photographs, videos or other aspects of his persona.

The ruling addresses the growing menace of deepfake videos and unauthorized content proliferating on social media platforms. Sharma's legal team had argued that the journalist, given his prominent standing and impeccable reputation as the face of Indian television journalism, required robust protection against such infringements.

The judgment represents a significant development in safeguarding the rights of public figures against digital manipulation and unauthorized use of their identity on social media platforms, setting a potential precedent for similar cases in the media and entertainment industry.